


Just the Two of them Against the Universe

by WhoCop



Category: Doctor Who
Genre: Angst, Multi, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, and then, its not obviously apparent but the Doctor is autistic and is in everything I write, spoilers for Fugitive of the Jadoon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-28
Updated: 2020-01-28
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:28:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22454983
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhoCop/pseuds/WhoCop
Summary: The Doctor sure had an identity crisis didn't she? Please can we give her a hug?
Relationships: The Doctor/The Master (Doctor Who), Thirteenth Doctor/The Master (Dhawan)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 166





	Just the Two of them Against the Universe

**Author's Note:**

> Please this has major spoilers for Fugitive of the Jaddon so if you're not caught up I don't recommend this as a read

She could feel herself shaking. She held out her hands in front of her face. She was right, they were shaking. She grabbed her phone out of her pocket, nearly dropping it in the process. Her text was sloppy and frantic and she wasn't even sure he would get it, but she needed him and didn't trust her mind to get herself into contact with him.

It was less than five minutes before the Doctor's panic came back in full force. She knew herself. She could _count_. She'd run out -- how, why -- She curled into herself. Nothing made any sense anymore. Who was she? How could she not know --

" _Theta_!" A voice broke through her anxious spiral. There he was, crouched in front of her face, clearly deeply worried. He took her face in his hands, rubbing his thumb across her temple, "What's going on? What happened?"

She shook her head rather than answering. Instead, She pressed herself against his chest and let herself cry.

He held her: unsure of what else he could do for her. Eventually though she'd literally cried herself out and could only manage choking sobbing sounds. "Shh" he muttered running a hand through her hair, re-positioning both of them so that he was lying on the TARDIS floor and she was lying on his chest.

He realized that eventually she fell asleep, he very carefully got up and scooped the Doctor up. She might as well sleep somewhere more comfortable. He ended up in her bedroom. He realized it looked similar enough to their room at the academy, just as messy, the same kinds of shit lying around.

She woke up later, unsure of how long she had been asleep. She blinked the sleep out of her eyes and looked around, not sure of how she'd ended up in her bedroom; until her eyes looked over at him. She tilted her head in an unasked question.

"Do you want tea?" He stared into her eyes, trying to read her.

She shook her head. There was no use delaying the inevitable. She patted the space on the bed next to her.

"Are you sure?" He waited for her to nod, and he sat next to her.

She leaned into his side, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Doctor," He said Quietly, "What happened?"

She pushed her forehead against his. She wasn't ready to speak yet, she trusted him in her mindspace. Most everything in there he already knew anyway.

He very carefully pushed himself into the Doctor's mind. He saw everything about "Ruth" and her husband, Gat, the Jadoon. "Oh Theta... I told you they were liars. The things they've taken from us, the things they've done, to hurt us. Don't you see why I had to stop them?"

She turned to look at him. What he’d done was horrible. “Yes.” It was a choked sound, “I would never, but yes, I see how you did it.” 

He leaned back against the headboard and closed his eyes. “I didn’t want to. It still stings like a son of a bitch. But no one else deserved to go through what we have.” 

“There was probably a better way,” she muttered, she wasn’t arguing, she was just stating a thought. 

The Master shook his head, “Not with those bastards there wasn’t. Not with them all still so far up Rassilon’s ass they--”

“Master!” She blushed, she didn’t want to see where the rest of that analogy was going. 

He laughed and it was real and it was kind and it was juvenile. She felt the same as she had as kids joking around about Borusa and the rest of their teachers at the academy. She smiled, and it was a real smile, one of her firsts since she’d found out what he’d done to their people, and definitely the first since she’d had her own existence shattered through ‘Ruth’.

He pushed a strand of her hair behind her ear, “The smile suits you.”

He wasn’t one to openly flirt with her in the traditional human way, but that was so much sweeter for her to hear. And it only enticed her to smile wider at him. 

Something, in that moment, changed in his eyes. He smiled back at her, “Gods...I love you.”

She knew that. This wasn’t news to either of them. They’d loved each other almost since the moment they’d met as children. But for some reason, hearing him say it out loud again made her hearts stop and have butterflies in her stomach. She covered her face with her hands, she really was acting like they were still those little school kids on Gallifrey. “I love you too.” It was muffled by the hands over her face.

The Master smirked, “I can’t hear you love.” He was teasing her. 

She knew that.

So, she rolled her eyes, “I love you too. _Koschei_.” 

The name only caught him off guard for a moment, then it was his turn to roll his eyes, “Two can play at that game Theta.” He pushed her back onto the bed and hovered over her, “Do you happen to know if this regeneration is ticklish?” 

“No! No.” The Doctor said trying to maneuver herself out of his way. 

He hummed, “I think yes.” 

“ _Kos_!” She really was betrayed by her best friend. Sure it wasn’t the first time and it probably wouldn’t be the last, but at least this time no lives were at stake. Except for the Master’s. If he kept this up she might just have to kill him on the account of being very rude to his favorite person in the universe. 

“You wouldn’t actually kill me.” Well apparently someone was still tuned into her thoughts. “You’ve had plenty of chances before this would be too anticlimactic.” 

She shrugged, “I guess I’ll have to make you stop in other ways then.” And she kissed him.

And he kissed her back. 

And then finally it was just the two of them against the universe all over again.


End file.
